ERA SM US T • S
2014 ERASMUS Report
Erasmus report Thomas Schneider Spring semester 2014 Exchange student at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, School of Architecture, Design and Conservation.
From February to June 2014 I spent 5 months doing an Erasmus exchange semester in the Design school of Copenhagen. My focus in studying is and always was gathering as much
different experiences as possible. So after my diploma in furniture making at the Ecole Boulle in Paris I knew for sure that I wanted to go abroad, encouraged by an earlier internship in the Netherlands, also
funded by the Erasmus organization. Within a postgraduate program in Paris I applied in Copenhagen as well as some other schools in October 2013.
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ERASMUS Report
2014
WHY CPH? The Erasmus program offers a sheer uncountable number of possibilities when it comes to study abroad. From south to north, east to west the whole European continent can be explored. So I applied for universities in Italy, Switzerland, Finland and of course Denmark. Copenhagen figured as my favorite the whole time. The
Danish design mentality really embraces the traditional craftsmanship, with a great sensibility for materials and sense of poetry. With my background as a trained cabinetmaker I felt that I could benefit from their approach on how and why furniture is made. This little country gave the world a lot of great
designers - not few of them were actually craftsmen – and Danish design is today a renowned brand. A look on the school’s website increased my determination as I could take a look at the latest graduation projects and talks from teachers and students.
2014 ERASMUS Report
THE CITY Copenhagen is Denmark’s capital and situated on the country’s eastside at the Öresund. It takes less than 20 minutes to cross the Öresundbridge to Malmö, Sweden. In rankings Copenhagen is usually mentioned amongst the cities offering the best living-quality. A mix of modern architecture
and traditional, colored houses as in the Nyhavn area shapes the cityscape. Also the center is often compared to Amsterdam as you’ll find lots of canals and bridges, perfect spots to enjoy the summer. Copenhagen is a metropolis with a very international flair – the Danes speak perfect English - without the
nervous, speedy feeling of other capitals as London or Paris. A quick escape to the beach takes no longer than 10 minutes by subway and the huge amount of green areas, lakes and parks welcome the citizens to relax.
ERASMUS Report
2014
FIRST DAYS I took of a few days before the introductory Erasmus meeting in Copenhagen. As I am afraid of flying, I decided to go for the long trip by train. After 18 hours, by night train, high-speed train and ferry, crossing Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany, I arrived in winter wonderland. Even the central station looked like a little northern castle in the snow. Fortunately the hostel was situated right next to it: The
Backpacker hostel, which I can totally recommend. It offers clean and tidy rooms, a great staff and a cozy living area for very reasonable fees. Although earplugs are a must, as in any dorm snoring bed-neighbors are inevitable. I spend the first days with Louise, another student from Paris. I barely knew her before the trip since we’re from different departments within the school, but we eventually overcame
those differences and became partners in crime when it came to the daily struggles abroad. Together we explored the city and did some sightseeing, walked around the big lakes that form the border between the center and the surrounding districts vesterbro, norrebro and osterbro, and also to a couple of museums that belong to Copenhagen’s rich cultural heritage.
2014 ERASMUS Report
LIVING IN CPH As mentioned, I spent first nights in a hostel before I could meet with a Lady called Olga that I had contacted regarding an available room before my arrival. She invited me over for dinner with her husband to get to know each other better. Since her son had moved out of home she was looking for someone to sublet his room to. She is a concert pianist originated from Poland who immigrated with her family to Denmark. The flat was a big 9 (!) room apartment in the northeastern districts osterbro, an upper-class and family friendly area close to the National Art Gallery. As we immediately connected I was very pleased to move in that place. One has to
know that the average rent in Copenhagen is higher than the French standard - as pretty much everything this country – and I was not surprised but still impressed by the monthly 600₏ due.
times. Their creations are part of notable museum collections and their Gubi chair is already considered a Scandinavian design classic. Boris and his wife Maria were kind enough to let me life with them for a week But because of a family and considered my visit my landlords offer to pay them rent had to delay my as a serious offence to incoming for a week, their hospitality. You an inconvenience can imagine how happy they quickly made up I, who came on this to me by introducing journey to learn about me to a temporary the northern design host: their cousin mentality, was to spend Boris Berlin. Boris seven days sharing a happens to be one of flat and a lot of time the most renowned with those wonderful and influential furniture people. Not to mention designers of Denmark. the following months Together with Poul with my landlords Olga Christiansen he and Dan, which whom founded the studio I spend numerous KOMPLOT in 1987 dinners and build a which since have great relationship; been awarded many
MOVING AROUND Copenhagen offers a lot of easy and fast ways to travel the city. The bus system is quiet big and reliable on the hours, although I recommend downloading the free app to check on delays or night rates. The same goes for the two metro lines that connect the south to the north, undergoing the canal 24/7. Another
way to cross the water are waterbuses, small ferries that stop at stations along the canal and can be used as regular transportation but also for some sightseeing as they travel the historical harbor and the new opera house. But the best way of moving is on two wheels. The city is one of Europe’s bikefriendliest and if you
want to call yourself a real Copenhagener, than you have to ride! There’re several pages and groups on Facebook for bike trading and an average bicycle is about 700800 DKK, around 100 €. This represents indeed quiet an investment but most Erasmus students sell them again at the end of their stay.
2014 ERASMUS Report
SCHOOL The Danish School of Design has an educational project that is very different from my home institution and resembles most likely to a university. A regular semester is divided in 5 week periods. For each of them the students can choose between different project, theory classes or workshops, to build their own package. They include
lectures, workshop introductions and personal meetings with teachers and supervisors, but altogether only a dozen of mandatory hours a week. The rest of the time students have to organize their workload by themselves and study individually in big shared spaces where everyone has his own area. Open 24/7 and accessible with the
student card, those spaces are shared by all Bachelor design students. Working together, discussing the individual projects with people from different departments as visual communication, industrial design and so on, creates strong synergies. I will here list a brief overview on the projects I choose:
classes
1/CHOPINES Cork & Composites
characteristics of the material. Besides its REINVESTIGATING impressing ecological OLD MATERIALS AND and sustainable CONTEMPORARY qualities, cork is very DIGITAL “user friendly” and easy TECHNOLOGIES to put in a functional relation to the human This first 10 weeks body. project was all about the material cork. Embracing the Cork has been used materials orthopedic by mankind for the last qualities, I decided 5,000 years and it is a to focus on footwear. strategic component Creating Footwear used for multiple nowadays represents applications, from wine a highly technical bottles to aeronautics. process that could Especially in recent be considered more years a number of new of an engineer’s job cork based products than of a craftsmen were developed in or a designer. But order to exploit the using small scale cork industry residues digital command tools and push the materials and focusing on the properties. The starting inherent properties of point of the project the material to improve research was to them enabled me to examine the distinct realize a platform shoe
that can compete on the market. Based on century old construction principles – a cork core coated with a protecting material - the design evolved in order to match today’s market needs, contemporary production processes and improve the users experience and comfort. The emphasis of the project was mainly put on the production process. Instead of creating an entire shoe, different digital modelling and manufacturing tools enable me to design of a sole, which then was affixed/glued to a preexisting sneaker.
ERASMUS Report
2014
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2/BENCH DĂ˜ self-formulated
public space from the private one. The piece In the following study of furniture introduced period I choose a self- to the space in formulated project. question was a bench You could choose from that serves as both a all teachers at the coat rack and place to design school which sit, merging the two one you would want functions together to to act as supervisor, create a contemporary even from another piece that still department. I picked references the past. A prof. Ole Gormesen, bench is typically used a senior teacher in as a place to rest for furniture design. Within a brief period of time, this project I aimed allowing the user to to design and realize remove his shoes same a piece of entryway as the coatrack allows furniture, a room that him to undress himself specifically locks the and enter the domestic
space, acknowledging multifunctionality as key factor in modern minimal living. Therefore a small deviation – a fold - has been introduced in the overall shape allowing the rack to stand free and disconnected from the wall with a minimum use of space. Realized in black tinted solid ash and steel, it now is used in the flat of a Copenhagener friend.
ERASMUS Report
2014
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3/ESSAY self-formulated For the final period I took a theory class, also self-formulated. We could choose our own topic of research and discuss our work with a supervisor
so I wrote with an essay entitled “where wre we now� on postmodern furniture design throughout the last decades and its contemporary revival.
2014 ERASMUS Report
ERASMUS LIVE One of the best things about studying as an Erasmus student is that you’re never alone. From the very first day the group of exchange students stuck together, and we formed a clique that would explore the city and go through this exciting experience together. Real friendships emerged as we all faced the same struggles and beauties of living abroad. In class, the teachers
usually spoke English to everybody, and the lectures where held in English too. Although on presentation day students were free to perform in Danish. Altogether the Danes speak great English even if they’re sometimes a little shy to use it. The Government offers free Danish classes for all foreigners, but I have to admit that I dropped out after a few weeks. Danish
is a really difficult language, far from our Latin roots. It needs a lot of dedication and motivation to embark on that apprenticeship, and I decided that I rather spent that time enjoying myself and my friends. Even though I witnessed with joy how proud my friends were as they finally were able to order in Danish. Nightlife in Copenhagen is really diverse. As in every metropolis you’ll find something
for every taste. On the central station’s western side is the red light district, that has recently been upgraded to a rather fancy area by the transformation of the former meatpacking district. There are some nice bars and nightclubs as the Jolene and Lehrling&Maasteren. Unlike Parisian locations, prices for drinks here a rather
affordable. Another really nice spot is the bodega Malmö. Amongst the city oldest establishments, it is a part of Danish culture. Located on the riverside you can enjoy the sunset and sunrise in short summer nights through the bar’s windows. Or get introduced to the Danish billiard play by drunken sailors. In the city’s northern part, in
Norrebro, are also a lot of nice bars. They have a certain Berlin touch and hanging out there gives an idea why Copenhagen is a renowned fashion mekka.
2014 ERASMUS Report
MILANO Yet another class offered by the school was a one week trip to the salone de mobile in Milan. Along with a dozen other students we flew in and visited different areas of the city were the fair took place. It was an incredible experience to be there for the first time. More than a fair, it is an urban design festival. Schools, startups, young studios as well as the big names of the industry gather there every year and invade the streets
with showrooms and parties. From early in the morning till late night we admired great exhibitions, got introduced to off locations and walked our feet off in the salone’s never-ending pathways.
PEOPLE I’ve met wonderful people all along this journey. From my Landlords Olga and Dan who were heartwarmingly nice to me, to all my Erasmus fellows and the students of the KADK. It is said that
Danes have a quiet and reserved way, but I must harshly disagree with this statement. People encountered us with a lot of curiosity, willing and wanting to get to know us, and in no time we integrated the Danish student
community. We got welcomed in the best imaginable way, went out together, and had even a big good-bye celebration organized for us.
ERASMUS Report
2014
Conclusion Leaving all this behind on June 27th sure was not an easy thing to do. After just a few months I grew terribly attached to the Danish culture and people
I’d met. I hereby strongly recommend to anyone this trip abroad. It is a once in a lifetime experience; the conditions, excitement, dynamism
and the freedom you’ll encounter as an exchange student are absolutely unique. Go for it!
ERASMUS Report
2014